NameCensus.

UK surname

Summons

An English surname derived from a legal term referring to an official call or citation.

In the 1881 census there were 116 people recorded with the Summons surname, ranking it #18,126 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 149, ranked #23,844, down from #18,126 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Rose Market, Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff and Kessingland. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Pembrokeshire, Waveney and Hambleton.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Summons is 395 in 1891. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 28.4%.

1881 census count

116

Ranked #18,126

Modern count

149

2016, ranked #23,844

Peak year

1891

395 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Summons had 116 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #18,126 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 149 in 2016, ranked #23,844.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 395 in 1891.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Summons surname distribution map

The map shows where the Summons surname is concentrated in each census or modern distribution year. Darker areas mean a stronger local concentration.

Distribution map

Summons surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Summons over time

The table below tracks recorded surname counts and rank from the 19th-century census years through the modern adult-register period.

Year Period Count Rank
1851 historical 140 #13,593
1861 historical 353 #7,242
1881 historical 116 #18,126
1891 historical 395 #8,961
1901 historical 201 #15,059
1911 historical 177 #16,129
1997 modern 142 #21,856
1998 modern 144 #22,221
1999 modern 146 #22,202
2000 modern 150 #21,781
2001 modern 153 #21,197
2002 modern 156 #21,348
2003 modern 156 #21,115
2004 modern 153 #21,528
2005 modern 151 #21,667
2006 modern 152 #21,721
2007 modern 148 #22,406
2008 modern 145 #22,929
2009 modern 142 #23,791
2010 modern 133 #25,379
2011 modern 131 #25,430
2012 modern 143 #24,019
2013 modern 151 #23,529
2014 modern 156 #23,231
2015 modern 151 #23,613
2016 modern 149 #23,844

Geography

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Where Summons' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Rose Market, Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Kessingland, Hubberston and St Leonard Shoreditch. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Pembrokeshire, Waveney and Hambleton. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Some modern areas include a three-digit suffix, such as Leeds 110. The suffix is a small-area code, so it stays in the table while the prose uses the plain place name.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Rose Market Pembrokeshire
2 Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff Gloucestershire
3 Kessingland Suffolk
4 Hubberston Pembrokeshire
5 St Leonard Shoreditch London (East Districts)

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Pembrokeshire 010 Pembrokeshire
2 Pembrokeshire 009 Pembrokeshire
3 Waveney 002 Waveney
4 Pembrokeshire 005 Pembrokeshire
5 Hambleton 001 Hambleton

Forenames

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First names often paired with Summons

These lists show first names that appear often with the Summons surname in historical and recent records.

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Summons

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Summons, this points to the kinds of places where the surname is most concentrated today.

These neighbourhood labels describe areas, not individual people. They are useful because surnames often cluster through family history, migration, housing patterns and local work. A surname can be strongest in one type of neighbourhood even when people with that name live across the country.

The UK classification gives the national picture. The London classification is more specific to the capital, where housing, age profile, tenure and population mix can look quite different from the rest of the UK.

UK neighbourhood type

UK Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Retired Professionals

Group

Spacious Rural Living

Nationally, the Summons surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Spacious Rural Living, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Summons household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These predominantly ageing households typically have no resident dependent children. Most are owner-occupiers and live in detached houses in low density residential developments (although renting is more common than in the rest of the Supergroup). White ethnicity predominates. Residents are typically beyond retirement age but those still in work have managerial, professional or skilled trade occupations. White ethnicity and Christian religious affiliation predominate. Neighbourhoods are located throughout rural UK.

Wider pattern

Typically married but no longer with resident dependent children, these well-educated households either remain working in their managerial, professional, administrative or other skilled occupations, or are retired from them – the modal individual age is beyond normal retirement age. Underoccupied detached and semi-detached properties predominate, and unpaid care is more prevalent than reported disability. The prevalence of this Supergroup outside most urban conurbations indicates that rural lifestyles prevail, typically sustained by using two or more cars per household.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Summons is most associated with areas classed as Inner London Working Professionals, part of Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles. This gives the surname a London-specific profile rather than forcing the capital into the same pattern as the rest of the country.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These primarily Inner London neighbourhoods are more densely populated than the Supergroup average. Residents have a younger over-all age profile than the Supergroup as a whole, and are less likely to be owner occupiers. Full time employment is more common than elsewhere in the Supergroup and multiple car ownership is uncommon. Chinese and non-EU-born European migrants are less in evidence than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

Wider London pattern

These neighbourhoods house people of all ages, predominantly of White British or European extraction. Resident turnover is low. Religious affiliation is less common than average and tends to be Christian if expressed. Homeownership, typically of terraced houses, is common but use of the social rented sector is not. Employment is typically in professional, managerial and associate professional or technical occupations. There are few full-time students. Level 4 qualifications are common. More households lack dependent children than have them which, considered alongside low levels of crowding and over-all age structure, indicates that many households may be post child-rearing and in late middle age. Incidence of disability is low, as is residence in communal establishments.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Summons is most concentrated in decile 6 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname near the middle of the scale.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

6
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Summons falls in decile 5 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname near the middle of the scale.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

5
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Summons is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 30-40 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

6
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

This describes the area pattern most associated with Summons, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Summons

The surname Summons is believed to have originated from the Middle English word 'summonce', which means a legal summons or citation to appear in court. The name likely evolved from an occupation or status, referring to someone who was responsible for delivering legal summonses or worked in a court or legal setting.

The earliest recorded instances of the Summons surname can be traced back to the 13th century in England. In 1273, a William Summance is mentioned in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire. The name appears with various spellings in historical records, such as Summons, Sumance, and Sumaunce.

One of the earliest notable individuals with the surname Summons was John Summons, a member of the Parliament of England who served from 1395 to 1397. Records also show a Thomas Summons who was a landowner in Gloucestershire in the late 15th century.

In the 16th century, the Summons surname can be found in various parts of England, particularly in the counties of Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, and Worcestershire. During this period, the name was sometimes spelled as Sumance or Summance.

A notable bearer of the Summons surname was Sir George Summons (1554-1610), an English lawyer and Member of Parliament who served as a Justice of the King's Bench during the reign of King James I.

In the 17th century, the Summons family established themselves in the county of Somerset. Records show a Richard Summons (1612-1678) who was a prominent landowner and served as a Justice of the Peace in Somerset.

Another notable individual with the Summons surname was John Summons (1704-1787), an English clergyman and author who served as the Rector of Maperton in Somerset.

As the Summons surname spread across various regions of England, it also appeared with various spellings, such as Summance, Summaunce, and Summonce, reflecting the regional variations in pronunciation and spelling.

While the Summons surname has its roots in England, it has since been carried to other parts of the world by individuals and families who emigrated from England, contributing to the global distribution of the name.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Summons families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Summons surname. Use the location tables for concentration, then the name and occupation tables for the people behind the surname.

Top counties

Total is the county count. Frequency and index adjust for local population size, so they are better concentration signals. Suffolk leads with 31 Summons' recorded in 1881 and an index of 22.49x.

County Total Index
Suffolk 31 22.49x
Norfolk 18 10.35x
Pembrokeshire 14 38.93x
Kent 12 3.11x
Lancashire 12 0.89x
Middlesex 10 0.88x
Cambridgeshire 5 6.98x
Surrey 5 0.91x
Essex 3 1.34x
Hampshire 3 1.29x
Bedfordshire 1 1.71x
Cornwall 1 0.78x
Devon 1 0.42x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Everton in Lancashire leads with 8 Summons' recorded in 1881 and an index of 18.70x.

Place Total Index
Everton 8 18.70x
Flixton 8 8888.89x
Gillingham 8 100.50x
Benacre 7 8750.00x
Earsham 7 2916.67x
Sotterley 7 7000.00x
Hubberston 6 1132.08x
Steynton 5 431.03x
Aylmerton 4 3333.33x
Bexley 4 117.30x
Rotherhithe 4 28.61x
Soham 4 259.74x
Wrentham 4 1052.63x
Ditchingham 3 714.29x
Great Clacton 3 394.74x
Islington London 3 2.74x
Llanstadwell 3 254.24x
Bromley London 2 8.04x
Bungay Holy Trinity 2 281.69x
Heigham 2 21.41x
Manchester 2 3.31x
Mile End New Town 2 129.87x
Norwich St Simon St Jude 2 1428.57x
Pendleton In Salford 2 12.50x
St Pancras London 2 2.20x
Yateley 2 454.55x
Aldershot 1 12.87x
Beccles 1 45.05x
Bermondsey 1 2.97x
Bow 1 312.50x
Chatteris 1 54.64x
Falmouth 1 22.08x
Kensington London 1 1.59x
Lowestoft 1 15.36x
Luton 1 9.86x
Shipmeadow 1 1250.00x

Top female names

These are the female first names most often recorded with the Summons surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Mary 8
Elizabeth 5
Sarah 5
Ellen 4
Ann 3
Eliza 2
Emma 2
Jane 2
Margaret 2
Phoebe 2
Alice 1
Anne 1
Augusta 1
Betsy 1
Catherine 1
Charlote 1
Charlotte 1
Emily 1
Eva 1
Fanny 1
Florence 1
Hannah 1
Happy 1
Harriet 1
Karahappuck 1
Lavinia 1
Martha 1
Pamela 1
Patsy 1
Phebe 1
Phillis 1
Selina 1
Susan 1

Top male names

These are the male first names most often recorded with the Summons surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

FAQ

Summons surname: questions and answers

How common was the Summons surname in 1881?

In 1881, 116 people were recorded with the Summons surname. That placed it at #18,126 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Summons surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 149 in 2016. That gives Summons a modern rank of #23,844.

What does the Summons surname mean?

An English surname derived from a legal term referring to an official call or citation.

What does the Summons map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Summons bearers relative to the surrounding population.

What records is this surname page based on?

The historical counts come from census surname records. The modern counts and neighbourhood summaries come from later surname distribution records. Counts are recorded bearers in those records, not a live estimate of everyone with the name today.